Oil and Gas lease sale assessment for lands in Moffat County available for public comment (08-02-13)

CRAIG, Colo. – The Bureau of Land Management Little Snake Field Office today released a preliminary environmental assessment for public review that evaluates offering 9 parcels totaling 7,435 acres north of Craig in itsFeb. 13, 2014competitive oil and gas lease sale.

These parcels are identified as available to oil and gas leasing under the current resource management plan for the Little Snake Field Office. The RMP identifies what restrictions, or stipulations, are included with the leases.

Nineteen additional parcels were nominated totaling 16,941 acres in priority Greater Sage-grouse habitat in Moffat County, but will not be offered in this lease sale. Of the 7,435 acres being considered, 2,078 are BLM-managed surface and 5,357 are private lands with federal minerals.

The EA, a list of the parcels and the attached stipulations are available online atwww.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/lsfo.htmland at the Little Snake Field Office, 455 Emerson in Craig.

Written comments must be received bySept. 3, and may be submitted via e-mail tolsfoweb@blm.govor by mail to the Little Snake Field Office, 455 Emerson St., Craig, CO 81625.

The State of Colorado receives 49 percent of the proceeds of each lease sale. In Fiscal Year 2011, Colorado received more than $154 million from royalties, rentals and bonus bid payments for all federal minerals, including oil and gas. Statewide, there are more than 22,900 jobs tied to mineral and energy development on public lands.

Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM's mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of Americas public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. In Fiscal Year 2015, the BLM generated $4.1 billion in receipts from activities occurring on public lands.